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10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
I am hereby banning the phrase 'Return to Form'., 3 Jun 2004
Fact - the last four or five Prince albums have been shocking. Reviews on this site, however, have heralded a triumphant return to form in each one (can they all be a return to form?!)I beg to differ. While I sympathise with fellow die-hard Prince fans who really want to believe, like me, that the little purple chappie still has it in him, I cannot accept that churning out this kind of mediocre strangeness constitutes a return to form. Musicology isn't bad, it's just not worthy of sitting on the same same shelf as Sign of the Times, Lovesexy or anything earlier. The tracks on this latest effort nod at some old classics, but in doing so draw attention to their own shortcomings. The title track is strangely reminiscent of 'Sexy MF', which at the time stood out as a bad song on a half-decent album. 'Life of the Party' is a 'Housequake' for the new millenium, but hardly compares. 'Cinnamon Girl' is awful, and the intro to 'If Eye' is a retreat to the worst excesses of vocal self-indulgence since 'Solo'. A couple of others would have been at home on the 'Chaos and Disorder' album, but I could believe they were out-takes. Tracks 2 and 11 are excellent, and should be played on repeat until you die. As with 'The Rainbow Children', Prince has chucked in a couple of ironic references to his dwindling fan-base ('He don't play the hits no more, plus I thought he was gay / my voice is getting higher and I ain't never had my nose done'). To me though, the problem with this album and the previous five is not the change in direction - look at REM, Primal Scream, Kylie, even (dare I say it) Tom Jones, who have all re-invented successfully over the years - but the fact that the end result just isn't that good any more. Happily, Sony has beaten a few of the more irritating idiosyncracies out of the be-purpled one. I am delighted to report that there is none of that ridiculous 33rpm voice (which was perfect on the Black Album's Bob George but crass on everything since) or the scripted comedy scenes between tracks that plagued a lot of the late NPG stuff and, more lately, the Rainbow Children. This is a passable album, but is not a return to form, and I don't think there will be one now. Stop your Prince collection at Chaos and Disorder. Having said that I will continue to buy eagerly (and then be disappointed by) everything he ever releases .. and perhaps that's what upsets me.
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